


your eyes outshine the town, they do

by meteoranger



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, M/M, Modern Era, luffy's family (both biological and foster) join the straw hats' annual christmas party, zoro is in shock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2019-12-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:47:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22032043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meteoranger/pseuds/meteoranger
Summary: Zoro had never been the type who got scared or intimidated easily. He was a proud man who faced everything head-on, without any fear, no matter what it was; NOTHING could EVER faze him.....or so he thought.In which Luffy's family comes over for Christmas, and Zoro's in for quite the surprise. Written for @cozza for OP Secret Santa 2019.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy/Roronoa Zoro
Comments: 6
Kudos: 197
Collections: OP Secret Santa 2019





	your eyes outshine the town, they do

When Luffy had first declared that Christmas was going to be spent at his place this year, Zoro hadn't given it much thought - after all, the only thing that really mattered to him was good booze, and he could bring some of his own regardless of where the party was going to be held. Celebrations were always a joint effort anyway, with everyone pitching in for food and drinks and decorations and activities, and Zoro didn't mind bringing in his own alcohol as long as he got to drink it. He typically had no hand in the actual planning of things, preferring to spend his time working out in the gym or sleeping, so he was often spared the stress of party preparation.

All of that stress hit him right in the face, however, when he was welcomed to his boyfriend’s apartment by none other than Luffy’s father himself, the famed activist Monkey D. Dragon, whose massive frame took up much of the doorway.

It took all of Zoro’s effort to not drop all the sake he was holding right then and there.

What. The. HELL?! What was Luffy’s dad doing here? Didn’t he live overseas? When did he get back, and why was he at their Christmas party? Was he invited? If he was, why didn’t Zoro know about it? Surely Luffy would have told him, right? Right?

_WHAT THE HELL?!_

He was frozen completely in place as Dragon blinked and looked him over before seemingly recognizing him. "Ah… You’re Zoro, yes? Luffy’s boyfriend?" All Zoro could manage was a strangled noise in response, which Dragon seemed to take for assent as he nodded his head and stepped aside to let him through. "Come on in. Party’s already started, but there’s a lot of food t-"

"ZOROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Just like that, Luffy propelled himself seemingly out of nowhere and attached himself to his green-haired boyfriend, nearly knocking him over from the force of his welcoming hug. "Zoro, you’re late as always! Did you get lost again? I told you, you and Sanji should’ve gone together!"

"Didn’t wanna... ggghh-go with... with that shitty cook–" It was a bit hard to talk or even breathe with Luffy practically strangling him, and it took effort for Zoro to move his head away slightly to get a good look at the grinning boy. "Luffy, wh–"

"Oh, is that Zoro?" a familiar-sounding voice called out. Zoro immediately turned his head to see who it was, and his face paled even further; it was Luffy's older brother, Ace. "Hey, Zoro! It's been a while!"

"That's Zoro, huh?" said the blond man who stood next to him. It took a moment before Zoro recognized him as Luffy's other older brother, Sabo. They had never met in person, but Zoro had seen him a lot in pictures and had even said hi to him once over a video call. This time, Zoro began to truly feel faint, even as Sabo smiled brightly at him. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"Hey!" called out a different, much older and deeper yet unfamiliar voice this time. "What's all that commotion over there?"

Before Zoro could even see who it was, he already felt his stomach sink even more. Surely this couldn't get any worse?

"Grandpa!" exclaimed Luffy, and this time Zoro really felt as though he was going to pass out any second. "Grandpa, Zoro's finally here! I told you he just got lost!"

"Is that booze he's got over there?" From the living room, Zoro saw Luffy's foster father Shanks, grinning at the sight of more alcohol and waving. The man had supposedly been in charge of taking care Luffy while both his father and grandfather were away, but he was often travelling himself, leaving care of the boy to his wife Makino. "Bring it over here and come drink with us, then!"

Oh how Zoro wished the ground would just open up and swallow him whole.

He was practically in a daze as Luffy dragged him excitedly to the living room, where almost everybody was gathered. Nami, Vivi, and Robin were happily chatting up Koala and Makino, who were obviously visiting with their respective partners. Franky, Brook, and Usopp were seemingly putting on some sort of performance that Zoro couldn’t figure out, but which Chopper, Shanks, Ace, and Sabo seemed to be enjoying immensely. Sanji was nowhere in sight, but was most definitely in the kitchen in charge of the food as he always was.

Occupying an entire couch all by himself was Monkey D. Garp, Luffy’s grandpa, who was much larger than Zoro had expected. He stood up when Zoro and Luffy approached, and at his full height, he was even taller than the already towering Dragon. Rarely intimidated as he was, Zoro felt dwarfed before him, but to his surprise the much older man only grinned widely and put his (rather heavy) hand on his shoulder.

“So you’re Zoro, huh? It’s nice to finally meet you!” he greeted. “Luffy tells me you’re a big drinker, so come and join us!”

“T… Thanks.” Zoro felt quite sheepish as he sat down on the chair across from Garp, a sight that didn’t seem to escape the girls, who began giggling. Zoro quickly shot them a glare, but this wasn’t effective at all; Nami only smirked wider, looking amused at the whole situation, before turning to the others and resuming their chattering. From where he sat, Zoro swore he saw some money changing hands; did they know about Luffy’s family coming over and make some bet over it? If so, he was definitely going to get back at them, mostly Nami, for that later.

“So!” The sound of Garp’s voice brought Zoro back to attention. The large man was already pouring Zoro some of the sake he had brought, and while he was still smiling, the look in his eyes had turned quite intense and challenging. “I heard you and Luffy have been dating for a while, so I just wanted to know…” He began to lean in, and Zoro gulped nervously, unable to look away from the intimidating gaze. “...You sure you’re making the right decision dating my grandson?”

...

...

...

What?

“Grandpa!” exclaimed Luffy in protest as Zoro tried to process the question. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“I’m serious!” Garp threw up his hands, genuinely looking frustrated and confused. “A little runt like you that keeps getting into all sorts of trouble and constantly needs to be looked after? I sure as hell hope you’re not making this young man clean up after your messes!”

“That’s mean! I’m sure he doesn’t mind! Besides, it’s usually Sanji or Nami or someone else wh-”

“Oh, so you admit you’re being a bother to your other friends, then? I knew you couldn’t be left behind on your own! You're a grown man now, your friends shouldn’t be acting like your babysitters!” In a flash, Garp swung down his fist, immediately breaking Luffy’s chair in half as the dark-haired boy jumped back to avoid the punch. The sudden move caused the table to get knocked over, spilling the food and drinks it carried onto the floor. Zoro could only stare. He knew Garp was strong, but not _that_ strong; that move seriously looked like it came out of some action movie or something!

“Grandpa! You promised you wouldn’t destroy anything this Christmas! That’s the only reason I invited you!”

“Well, it’s difficult to control myself when my own grandson’s being a massive idiot! And are you trying to say you wouldn’t have invited me otherwise?!”

“I’m not an idiot! You take that back!”

“Make me!”

“I deeply apologize for this,” came a low voice from Zoro’s side, so sudden that it almost made him jump out of his seat. Since when had Dragon been sitting next to him?! Big as he was, the man was rather quiet and subdued, yet now that Zoro had noticed him it was difficult to deny the man had quite an intimidating aura himself. Dragon didn’t even spare Garp and Luffy, who were now getting into quite a heated fight over to the side, a glance, only handing Zoro another glass of sake to replace the one that had toppled over in the mess. “My father and my son tend to let their emotions get the better of themselves. Would you like a drink?”

“Y-yes, please.” Zoro only grew more and more confused by the second, but he took the glass gratefully and downed the drink in one go. Part of him figured he'd probably need a _lot_ of alcohol to get through the night; thankfully he wasn't a lightweight and could handle his booze, otherwise that'd be embarrassing.

As he did so, Shanks came over with a wide grin, simply kicking away the remains of Luffy’s chair as he dragged his own and sat on it, taking up the free space on Zoro’s other side. “‘Bout time I got a good look at you, Roronoa,” he said, putting an arm around Zoro in a friendly manner. The redhead already smelled heavily of alcohol, but didn’t seem particularly drunk yet. “Been dying to meet you since Luffy said he got himself a boyfriend. Told him I wouldn’t believe it until I saw ‘im in the flesh. So, you really dating?”

“Y-yeah,” replied Zoro, unable to believe what was happening right now. All he had expected was the usual Christmas party with his friends, with lots of food and booze and games and gifts, not… _this._ He and Luffy had been dating for just a little over a year, though they’d known each other and had been good friends for much longer. The whole time, the idea of meeting Luffy’s family had never really been brought up, since the only family Luffy really talked about (his foster brothers Ace and Sabo and his foster father Shanks) lived far away, and he had presumed Luffy’s biological family was out of the picture. Zoro never really asked about them, either, since he didn’t really care about those things, but now it was all he could think about. Now he knew what Nami felt like when she worried about making a good impression on Vivi’s parents when her girlfriend first introduced them; back then, he had thought it was stupid, telling Nami she ought to just consider it like meeting any other new person and act natural, but now _he_ felt like the fool.

How was he supposed to act natural around these people?! Not only were they Luffy's family, but they were bigshots in their own right! Garp was a famous war hero, his name known far and wide, and he still continued to lead the navy with an iron fist. Dragon was an activist who led the biggest revolutionary movement in the whole world, renowned for the help he offered to every nation and territory that cried out for freedom, and Sabo ranked directly under him. Shanks and Ace's notoriety was far greater in the underground, but that didn't make them any less powerful, both of them leading their own groups and owning large territories themselves; it was only that while Shanks was his own boss, Ace was a commander under the great Edward Newgate, who was better known as Whitebeard.

Compared to them, Zoro was pretty ordinary. Sure, he was the successor to the dojo of his mentor, Koushirou, and was a renowned kinshi himself, but he was still working his way towards becoming the greatest in the world. Until he reached that goal, Zoro wouldn't feel accomplished.

His thoughts were interrupted when Ace and Sabo, seeing him cozying up with Dragon and Shanks, brought their own chairs over, looking like kids excited for storytime. “Tell us all about it,” Ace said with a wide grin. “Like, how’d it happen? Who confessed first? I bet it was you, Luffy'd be too dumb to figure things out himself.”

“And _don’t_ leave out any details, please,” added Sabo, sighing as he gestured towards Luffy, who was now being held in a chokehold by Garp. “He wouldn’t tell us _anything_ except for ‘We just got together’ and ‘Mind your own business’, but we’d really appreciate it if you told us more.”

From where he sat, Dragon said no more and only nodded. 

Zoro could practically _feel_ Nami sneering right behind him, and honestly? He couldn’t blame her. What kind of situation had he gotten himself into?

Of all the things he would've expected Luffy's family to ask him about or even do to him, it wasn't... _this_.

With all four men eyeing him with intense curiosity, Zoro knew it was definitely one he couldn’t get himself out of. Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth to speak. “Well, it started when…”

* * *

The rest of the night seemed to pass by in a haze, and by the end of it, Zoro was completely drained. He had told Dragon, Shanks, Ace, and Sabo exactly all about how he and Luffy got together, with all four men reacting with much gusto and asking more questions than Zoro had expected, and with Makino and Koala joining in halfway out of their own curiosity - all of this while Garp continued to chase Luffy in the background and make a huge mess. 

When Sanji called everyone to dinner, Garp insisted Zoro sit next to him to fill him in on everything that he missed, and Luffy would have protested had he not been distracted by the cool new gadgets Franky was showing off on their side of the table. After dinner came the gift exchange, which Zoro didn’t even want to think about; all he knew that he was _definitely_ going to have a private word with Nami later over why she had chosen to give Luffy… _that_ today of all days when she had clearly known his family was coming over. It was going to be hard to forget everyone’s reactions, especially Garp’s and Dragon’s stunned faces, Makino’s whisper of “Isn’t that going to hurt?” to Shanks, Ace’s loud laughter, and Sabo's flustered sputtering.

By the end of it all, Luffy had fallen asleep, and was resting peacefully in a warm bundle of blankets alongside Ace, Chopper, and Usopp by the fireplace. Everybody else was working on cleanup, and Zoro was taking out some trash bags when Garp called out to him.

“Roronoa! Come over here for a sec!”

“I’ve got it,” said Makino as she appeared next to Zoro like magic, smiling as she took the bags from his hands. “Wouldn’t want to keep Garp-san waiting.”

“Oh… Thanks.” Zoro bowed his head before heading over to Garp. The old man stood by the door, putting on his coat alongside Dragon, who was also doing the same. Zoro blinked at the sight. “You guys aren’t spending the night?” he asked. “It’s snowing out there.” Makino had already carried off a drunk Shanks to one of the guest rooms earlier, and Zoro had heard from Koala that Ace and Sabo were going to be sleeping in another. In response, Garp laughed and shook his head.

“Would love to, but wouldn’t want to overstay our welcome. Place is crowded enough as it is,” he said. “Besides…” His gaze turned soft, and Zoro turned to look at the same direction he was looking at - Luffy, snoring out loud and throwing an arm around Chopper to hold the younger boy like a pillow. “The lil’ runt looks happy and content here, and that’s all I really wanted to see.”

“Thank you for taking care of Luffy, Roronoa Zoro,” said Dragon. For the first time that night, Zoro saw him smile, a warm and proud one that mirrored Garp’s. “We know he’s in good hands with you. Please keep looking after him for us.”

To say that Zoro hadn’t expected this would be an understatement. He couldn’t help but smile himself as he nodded his head. “Of course. I wasn’t planning on doing any less,” he said, voice proud and confident. “I’m going to stay by Luffy’s side, no matter what.”

At that, Garp laughed. “You better!” he said. “If I hear the boy gets hurt, you’re gonna be hearing directly from me, young man! Best keep that in mind.”

Earlier in the day, the words would’ve intimidated Zoro, but now he responded with a laugh of his own, accepting the challenge. “You got it.”

He waved goodbye to the father and son pair as they left, not going back inside the apartment until they were out of sight. He was about to start helping with the cleaning again when Vivi stopped him, gesturing for him to come over.

“Bushido-san, do you mind taking Luffy to his room?” she whispered with a little smile. “We’d let them stay in front of the fire, but we’ve still got a lot to clean up. Robin-san’s already taking Tony-kun while Sanji-kun’s taking Usopp-san… Sabo-kun was going to take Ace-kun, but he ended up falling asleep too, so Koala-chan’s taking them both.”

“Both? That girl’s really a strong one, huh.” Zoro chuckled before nodding and stretching his arms. “But sure, no problem. Leave Luffy to me.”

“Thank you!” Vivi smiled even wider. “After that, could y-”

“-help with the cleaning?” Zoro sighed. “Yeah, don’t worry, I already know. Your girlfriend’s gonna increase my debt if I don’t.”

Vivi giggled softly at that. “Well, I’ll leave you to it then, Bushido-san!”

With that, Zoro walked over towards the fireplace. Luffy was the only one laying on the blankets now, looking all warm and comfy with him hogging them all to himself. Zoro couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips as he bent down to lift the dark-haired boy in his arms, holding him securely before carrying him off to his room.

He was just setting Luffy down on his bed when he felt a tug on his sleeve. Chuckling, Zoro leaned in to press a soft kiss atop Luffy’s head, an act that made the younger boy grin even with his eyes still closed. “Sorry, did I wake you up?” he asked as he sat down next to him. Luffy shook his head as he opened his eyes, turning a little so he could press close to Zoro’s side.

“Nah, I’ve been awake since Robin picked Chopper up,” he said. “Was just waiting for you to take me to my room.”

“Oh? Cheeky brat.” Zoro smiled and ruffled Luffy’s hair, making the other boy laugh. “You had fun today?”

“Yeah! I had lots of fun! The food Sanji made was great, and there were so many gifts, and we got to play a lot of games, and Ace and Sabo and dad and grandpa and Shanks and Makino were here! But…” The grin on Luffy’s face fell, and he pouted as he curled up against Zoro even more. “I barely got to spend time with you, Zoro!”

“Huh… Now that you mention it…” Zoro hadn’t realized it at first, but he _had_ spent much more time entertaining Luffy’s family than actually spending time with Luffy himself. Still, he hadn’t expected his boyfriend to sulk over it - not that he was complaining, of course. He chuckled and ruffled Luffy’s hair a bit more, finding him pretty cute like this. “Well, if your family wasn’t here, I wouldn’t have spent so much time talking to them… Speaking of which, you didn’t even tell me they were coming.”

“Huh? But I did!” Luffy sat up at that, mouth hanging open in disbelief. “Last week, when we were planning the party, I told everyone that we’re celebrating at _my_ place this year because everyone agreed to visit!”

“What, you didn’t-” Zoro paused as at the very back of his mind, a brief memory played of Luffy announcing to the whole crew that his family was going to be visiting for Christmas, with everyone reacting in total shock while Zoro… simply yawned and took a nap. “...Ah.”

Luffy pouted even more this time. “You weren’t listening, were you? So that’s why you looked so shocked when you arrived today! Nami and Sanji said you looked stupid, and they were right!”

“Hey, was that part necessary?!” Zoro sighed, rubbing his face before raising his hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, it was my bad. I wasn’t really paying attention,” he admitted. “Still, all things considered… I think I did pretty well?”

“Mmm…” Luffy crossed his arms and looked thoughtful, seemingly going through the party in his head, before finally grinning and nodding. “Yup, think you did pretty well! Everyone looked like they really liked you - even Grandpa, and it’s not easy to get on his good side! Ace and Sabo said they want to get to know you even better, too, so I was thinking we could go out and play in the morning! I think the paintball place is gonna be open!”

“Paintball? Is this going to be a test of strength or something?” Zoro laughed. It seemed that despite getting the approval of Luffy’s family, he was still going to be tested quite a number of times; not that he minded, of course. “Sure, bring it on. I’ll show your brothers I’m more than capable.”

“Shishishi! It’s settled, then!” Smiling widely, Luffy immediately put his arms around Zoro, hugging him tightly and nestling his head by the crook of his neck. It was a much tighter hug than usual, Zoro noticed, and he strained his ears to listen as Luffy muttered softly against his skin. “...Thanks, Zoro.”

It was all he said, but it was enough. Zoro smiled as well, closing his eyes as he put his arms around Luffy and held him even closer. At the end of the day, nothing mattered more than Luffy’s happiness, and if he could smile and have fun like he always did, Zoro was content. “It’s nothing, you silly brat,” he murmured in return, turning his head a bit to give him a kiss. “You know I love you, right?”

“And _I_ love _you_!” Luffy grinned as he snuggled up to him; Zoro was always firm and warm, and he liked holding him more than anything else. “Hey… For the New Year, how about we go over to your hometown? We can go visit your dojo, and then say hi to your friend Kuina… If that’s fine with you, of course!”

Zoro blinked in surprise at that before smiling, a familiar feeling of warmth and happiness Luffy always gave him spreading throughout his chest. “Yeah, sounds perfect to me,” he muttered, kissing him once more. Seriously, where would he be without this bundle of sunshine in his life? “Merry Christmas, Luffy.”

Luffy grinned even wider, settling happily against him. “Merry Christmas, Zoro.”

**Author's Note:**

> @cozza - I'm a bit late, but happy holidays to you! I really liked your prompts and was very excited to write this one for you, and there's so much more I wanted to add in here, but I was cut for time - nonetheless, I still hope you'll like it! Zoro/Luffy will always be my most favorite ship, and I've always wanted to explore what it would be like if Zoro got introduced to the family. I also tried to squeeze in some Nami/Vivi for you as well!
> 
> I'm a bit worried about everyone's characterizations, since I rarely write for OP despite it being my most favorite series ever, but I hope it turned out okay. Feedback would be greatly appreciated!
> 
> Happy holidays to everyone!


End file.
